Guidelines

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Business

• Guidelines to the National Privacy Principles (advisory)
• Guidelines on Privacy Code Development (binding and advisory)
• Public Interest Determination Procedure Guidelines - PDF, Word (advisory)
• Tax File Number Annotated Guidelines - PDF, Word (binding)
• Guidelines on Workplace E-mail, Web Browsing and Privacy (advisory)
• For Directors. Privacy and Boards: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You (May 2004) - PDF (advisory)
• NEW! Guide to Handling Personal Information Security Breaches (PDF) (advisory)

Health

• Guidelines on Privacy in the Private Health Sector (advisory)
• Medical Research - Guidelines under section 95 of the Privacy Act 1988 (binding)
• Medical Research - Guidelines approved under section 95A of the Privacy Act 1988 (binding)
• Privacy Guidelines for the Medicare Benefits and Pharmaceutical Benefits Programs (binding)
• NEW! Guide to Handling Personal Information Security Breaches (PDF) (advisory)

Government

• Guidelines to the Information Privacy Principles (advisory)
• Guidelines on Workplace E-mail, Web Browsing and Privacy (advisory)
• Guidelines for Federal and ACT Government World Wide Websites (advisory)
• Privacy and Public Key Infrastructure: Guidelines for Agencies using PKI to communicate or transact with individuals - PDF, Word, RTF   (advisory)
• Guidelines on the provision of personal information by Commonwealth agencies to Members of Parliament -  PDF, Word (advisory)
• Guidelines for the conduct of the data-matching program(binding)
• Guidelines for the use of data-matching in Commonwealth administration - PDF, Word (advisory)
• Public Interest Determination Procedure Guidelines - PDF, Word (advisory)
• Tax File Number Annotated Guidelines - PDF, Word (binding)
• Privacy Guidelines for the Medicare Benefits and Pharmaceutical Benefits Programs (binding)
• Covert surveillance in Commonwealth administration (February 1992) - PDF, Word (advisory)
• Privacy Impact Assessment Guide (August 2006) - HTML, PDF, Word (advisory)
• Australian Government agencies in the Northern Territory - Indigenous Protocol (entitled "Minding Your Own Business" - February 1998) - PDF, Word (advisory)
• NEW! Guide to Handling Personal Information Security Breaches (PDF) (advisory)

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Guidelines to the National Privacy Principles (September 2001)

To assist organisations in understanding their obligations under the Privacy Act 1988, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (the Office) has developed a set of guidelines that give organisations helpful information about the National Privacy Principles (NPPs). For organisations that want more detailed explanations, good practice or compliance tips, the Office has also released a number of information sheets. Organisations subject to the provisions of the Privacy Act will need to comply with the NPPs or an approved privacy code when handling personal information.

• Guidelines to the National Privacy Principles - HTML, PDF, Word, RTF, Zip

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Guidelines to the Information Privacy Principles (October 1994)

The Privacy Act 1988 recognises the importance that individuals place on the manner in which Federal and ACT government agencies treat their personal information and imposes stringent standards to which agencies must comply. Within the Act, 11 Information Privacy Principles (IPPs) govern the collection, storage, use and disclosure of personal information by Federal and ACT government agencies, as well as providing individuals with certain rights to access their personal information and correct errors.

These guidelines discuss how agencies can meet their IPP obligations when handling personal information. They provide a detailed discussion and analysis of each IPP, with explanation given as to the meanings of the various terms and expressions used. Federal and ACT government agencies should find these a valuable resource in understanding their obligations under the IPPs and implementing privacy compliant practices.

• Guidelines to Information Privacy Principles 1-3 - PDF, Word
• Guidelines to Information Privacy Principles 4-7 - PDF, Word
• Guidelines to Information Privacy Principles 8-11 - PDF, Word

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Guidelines on Privacy Code Development (September 2001)

The following version of the Code Development Guidelines includes the prescribed standards, as referred to in section 18BB(3)(a)(i) of the Act. Section 18BB(3) of the Privacy Act says that before a code has procedures for making and dealing with complaints can be approved, the Privacy Commissioner must be satisfied that the procedures meet the prescribed standards. The prescribed standards can be found in Appendix A.

• Guidelines on Privacy Code Development - HTML, PDF, Word, RTF, Zip

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